True Love Wins Out
by Robin4
Summary: True Love cannot be denied, despite Rumplestiltskin's best intentions to keep Belle safe by staying away from her. He tried to make sure that his cursed self and hers would be far apart in Storybrooke, but never counted on the way they would be drawn together. AU - Cursed Gold and Cursed Lacey fall in love despite the obstacles in their path. Mostly fluff and some angst.
1. Chapter 1

**True Love Wins Out**

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**Note**: _This collection of scenes is for all the FOTS fans who asked what happened between Gold and Lacey while under the curse._

_For anyone who has not read _Freeze on the Stones_, the premise is this: Rumplestiltskin and Belle marry four years before the curse in the Enchanted Forest and have a daughter (Renee in Storybrooke). Cora casts the curse instead of Regina, but Rumplestiltskin tries very hard to protect his wife and daughter from his jealous ex by writing a failsafe into the curse to keep them away from him. So, Lacey French is a single mother and struggling librarian, while Gold finds himself Cora's unwitting (and unhappy) boy-toy._

* * *

**1.**

She shouldn't be so nervous about this, and yet Lacey was. She and Gold had been seeing one another for—well, she didn't know how long, but it had been for quite some time. He was oddly insistent about keeping their relationship secret, but Lacey didn't care about that. Gold made her _happy_, for all his quiet sarcasm, biting sense of humor, and obsession with power. The town called him a monster, but Lacey knew him better than that. Beneath the hard exterior hid a good man, one who was gentle with her and always kind. He was shy, too, or had been in the beginning. Lacey would never call herself an expert seductress, but pushing their relationship forward had definitely been her responsibility; Gold had been almost timid in that regard. Now, however, she wanted to bring their relationship to yet another level.

"Are you sure you're all right with this?" she asked her lover (boyfriend seemed like such an inadequate word to describe how she felt about him) quietly as they approached the library doors.

"Of course I am, sweetheart," Gold replied, squeezing her hand with one of his tiny half-smiles. "I'm honored that you trust me this much, truly."

Lacey felt her own hesitant smile blossom. She had been with enough men to know that no one had ever set her on fire the way Gold did; there was something in the gentle way he touched her that sent her heart to racing. Oh, their relationship was far from perfect, particularly with Cora as an ever present shadow hanging over them, but she knew that she loved him. So, she squeezed his hand back.

"Renee is eager to meet you, actually."

"She is?" Gold stopped cold on the library steps, almost stumbling in his surprise.

Lacey leaned in to kiss him on the cheek. "I told her all about you, and how you helped me when she got sick," she explained. "And I told her that you tell wonderful stories."

"…I do?"

"I love it when you read to me," she told him honestly. "You've got a sexy voice."

"I hope you didn't tell your daughter that!" Gold stuttered, and Lacey laughed, pulling out her keys to unlock the library doors so that they could head up to her apartment.

"Of course not," she snickered. "Renee is three. She doesn't know what 'sexy' means. I just told her you tell the best stories."

"Oh. All right, then," her lover replied nervously, looking adorably off-balance.

Lacey gave him a cheeky smile and led him into the library, still holding his hand. She kept her pace reasonable, even though she wanted to rush up the stairs to make her butterflies go away. But she never let herself forget that Gold walked with a limp, a legacy of a car accident he'd told her very little about. But she knew that his wife bullied him into driving drunk, which had wound up destroying both their lives, leaving Gold with a crippling injury and killing their son. That same wife had left him not long afterwards, unwilling to live with a cripple and blaming him for their son's death, even if she had been the one who had left the boy in the car to die while she walked away without a scratch. Gold still had nightmares from the accident, almost as many as he did thanks to Cora, and Lacey was a little ashamed to admit that was part of the reason she was willing to trust him with Renee.

He loved children. Gold tried to hide that behind a diamond-hard exterior, but Lacey knew his secrets. She'd so rarely brought a boyfriend home to meet Renee—Tony had met her because he wouldn't stop dropping by, but _Tony _didn't count—and she'd always regretted doing so before. Gold, however, was special.

"Ready?" she asked him as they reached her door.

"If you are."

She grinned. "I am."

Unlocking the door, Lacey led him inside. As usual, Ashley Boyd was babysitting for her—Lacey didn't have a lot of money to spend on a babysitter, but Ashley was desperate enough that she never asked for much. Lacey didn't go out on many dates because she couldn't afford to leave Renee alone often, but now when she did, it was always with Gold. _And if it makes him feel better if I pretend not to notice when he slips cash into my jacket pocket, I'm all right with that. I _hate _needing charity, but if it makes Renee's life better, I'll swallow my pride. _Besides, knowing that Gold did it because he cared helped a lot.

"You're back early, Lacey," Ashley greeted her with a smile, walking into the tiny apartment's main room and stopping cold when she saw Gold. The heavily pregnant girl floundered for a moment, her smile turning upside down, and then continued weakly: "Renee's just got out of the bath. She's still awake and watching TV."

"That's fine, Ashley. Thank you," Lacey replied with a smile, reaching in her purse for the envelope containing her sitter's fee. "I paid you for the full four hours, even though we got back early."

"Thanks," the younger girl replied feelingly, and then fled with one last glance at Gold. Lacey waited for the door to close behind Ashley before turning to him with a smile.

"I think you scared her away, Gold."

Her lover shrugged. "I'm a difficult man to deal with. You know that."

"I think you don't try very hard," Lacey retorted. She always felt bolder with Gold; around other people, she was quiet and sometimes timid, but Gold made her feel strong. Maybe it was the way he looked at her, like she was the center of the universe. Or maybe it was the way she felt like she could do _anything _so long as she was with him. "Sometimes, I think you _like _it when people fear you."

But the last words were spoken lightly; she knew that her lover was more fragile than his outer veneer would suggest, and Lacey reached forward to toy with his tie as she teased him. Once he smiled, ever so slightly, she leaned in to kiss him gently. That made Gold melt a little, and then Lacey knew that now was the time to introduce her love to her daughter. He was no prince charming, Gold, but he was hers, and Lacey knew that he'd hit it off with Renee. So, she grabbed him by the hand and led him into the bedroom, where her tiny TV lived. Her three-year-old was engrossed in a sing-along show, but Renee turned to her with a sunny smile when she walked in.

"Mommy!"

Letting go of Gold, Lacey stepped forward to sweep up her daughter into her arms, cuddling her tightly for a moment. She was doing the right thing, wasn't she? Of course, her father would have told her that Gold was the worst type to bring home to meet her child, but Moe French had lost the right to tell her what to do when he'd thrown her out, pregnant and frightened, for refusing to give up her daughter. Her father hadn't helped her when Renee had been sick a year earlier, either, even though Lacey had abandoned her pride to beg him for assistance. Gold _had _helped, however, and that meant the world to Lacey.

"Mommy brought a special friend home to meet you," she told her daughter. "Do you remember me telling you about Mr. Gold?"

"Uh huh."

"Well, he came here to meet you. Are you all right with that?" she asked, knowing that her daughter had wanted to meet Gold for ages.

Brown eyes studied her, beautiful and round. Lacey had never been sure who her child's father was, but those eyes reminded her of _someone _she couldn't quite remember. Someone she saw only in her dreams. "Meet Gold? Yes!"

"He's here now," Lacey replied, turning so that her daughter could see the impeccably-dressed man standing in the doorway. He looked at Lacey awkwardly, obviously not sure if he should invite himself into her room or not. That thought almost made Lacey laugh, because she'd certainly been in _his _bedroom enough times. She'd never been able to stay the night, of course—not with Renee to come home to—but they'd had plenty of stolen moments together. But she was touched by his hesitation; it told her how much he cared for her.

"Down, Mommy!" Renee commanded, and Belle obliged her. Immediately, the three year old toddled over to Gold, looking up at him curiously.

"You is Gold?" she asked curiously.

"I am," he answered solemnly, lowering himself laboriously down to one knee in front of the little girl.

"Mommy likes Gold," was Renee's very serious response, and she seemed to study the slender man with a wisdom far beyond her years.

"And I like your Mommy," Gold said. "A lot."

"Okay. _I _like Gold," Lacey's daughter said, and that was that. "Up!"

Gold blinked in surprise as Lacey stood speechless; Renee hadn't liked any of Lacey's former flames, but she'd just hit it off with Gold within seconds. And he seemed touched by the toddler's sudden display of trust, carefully leaning his cane against the wall and obligingly picking her up. Lacey was only a little surprised to find that Gold knew exactly how to do that despite his limp; he was a clever man, and very self-sufficient for someone who was so crippled. She was still a little shocked when Renee immediately wrapped her arms around Gold's neck, making Lacey's lover smile.

"Like Gold," Renee repeated with a sunny smile, and for the first time she could remember, Lacey felt as if she had something almost like a family.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ More to come! Please do let me know what you think. Up next: Gold helps out when Renee is sick._

_Also, I'm open to prompts! Is there something you wondered about while reading FOTS? If so, let me know, and I'll see if I can't write it. :D_


	2. Chapter 2

**2\. **

Gold is not a man who believes in charity.

Having scraped his way up from nothing himself, Gold tended to feel nothing but scorn for those who had gotten themselves in dire financial straits and then begged for help in overcoming their problems. He'd been penniless, and he'd had nothing, and yet he had worked and schemed and fought until he was a millionaire several times over. If an ill-educated Scottish brat could earn his way into an Oxford law degree, anyone could succeed with enough hard work. Besides, he was a businessman, and excusing people for their monetary indiscretions was just bad for his bottom line. He wasn't in the practice of helping the 'poor unfortunate souls' who crawled to him, whining and wailing about how it would be just this _one _time, and of _course _they would pay him back. When Gold gave anything, it was always a loan, and loans he issued were inevitably expected to be paid on time. Lest there be unpleasant consequences.

He didn't believe in love, either, given his own disastrous experiences, but Lacey French awakened feelings in him that he had thought long dead. He had steadfastly ignored his loneliness since his son's death led to his (ex) wife leaving him, and Gold had told himself again and again that this life was what he wanted. He had every material comfort a man could desire, and if there were no annoying hangers-on to share it with, so much the better. But then he'd met Lacey.

The funny thing was that he couldn't even remember how he met her. He assumed that it must have been at the library, because he did love books (not something he admitted to most people), but Gold really couldn't recall. He couldn't recall what had made him ask her out to dinner, either; villainous reputation aside, he was not the sort of man to date a beautiful young woman half his age. He did remember being reduced to stammering idiocy when he'd tried to ask her, only to have Lacey give him a brilliant smile and agree almost before he could get the words out. That had kicked off a whirlwind (and secret) romance that Gold rapidly lost himself in. He tried to be cautious, tried to tell himself not to fall in love, and yet Lacey seemed to reciprocate his feelings in ways he'd never expected. He never asked, of course, but her affection seemed real enough, even if he knew that a woman like her loving a man like _him _was next to impossible.

All too quickly, she turned into the one balm that could soothe the wounds Cora often left, and Gold found himself depending upon Lacey more and more each day. She kept him sane, gave him comfort, and brought joy into his life that he had never expected. He tried so hard not to fall for her, but how could any man not fall for a woman as beautiful, graceful, and kind as Lacey? Before too long, she became the center of his world, and even though he tried desperately to hide that (lest she decide that the old man she humored with her affections was becoming too clingy), Gold had the feeling that Lacey saw right through him. But he could hardly help himself. He loved her.

That was why he noticed when his usually bright and optimistic lady turned tired and down. He hadn't seen Lacey in three days, and she hadn't returned his two calls, which left Gold nervous and wondering if she'd finally decided to invest in one of the many handsome and younger men vying for her attention. He couldn't blame her if she had. Common sense told Gold that there were hundreds of reasons why she might be too busy to call him, but that didn't calm his anxieties at all. Nor did the knowledge that they had always kept their relationship a secret, which meant neither of them could spend as much time with the other as they liked.

However, when Lacey walked into his shop that winter afternoon, Gold immediately knew something was wrong. They were alone in the shop, so Gold limped around the counter to meet her right away. "What's the matter, sweetheart? Are you all right?"

If that bastard deputy sheriff was bothering her again, Gold was going to do a lot more than just raise his rent.

"I'm fine," Lacey said glumly, and for once there was no light in her beautiful blue eyes. "I just needed someone to talk to, and I didn't know where else to go."

Her voice hitched suspiciously on the last word, and Gold found himself drawing her into his arms. Until now, their relationship had always been primarily physical and intellectual, comprised of two intelligent individuals who were also enjoying one another's bodies. They'd both seemed to be trying to avoid demonstrating true emotional investment, and had never dared speak of love. Getting in too deep while he was still—regretfully and inexplicably—involved with Cora was utterly foolish. Yet Gold had always known he was doomed to love Lacey; somehow, she had come to mean too much to him. He had, however, thought she preserved enough common sense to avoid falling in love with _him._

And yet she was turning to _him _for comfort, turning to the town monster to hold her tightly. So, he did, asking for nothing in exchange and stroking her hair with one hand. Her tears were quiet when she started to cry, and for a moment, Gold had no idea what to do. He was supremely ill-suited to comfort a crying woman, but… Pushing aside his misgivings, Gold simply held the woman he loved, bending his head to kiss her hair as she buried her face in his shoulder. He must have done _something _right, because she relaxed into his embrace. Lacey's hands were gripping his jacket fiercely enough to wrinkle his suit, but Gold didn't care. She mattered more than a hundred of his designer suits.

Finally, Lacey calmed herself with a deep but ragged breath, pulling back a little but not letting go of him. Her grip relaxed, however, and she looked up to give him a small smile. "Thank you," she said softly.

"After all you have done for me…it's the least I can do," Gold said softly. He'd never referenced the nightmares she held him through, but they both knew that Lacey had helped him through some very rough times over the last few months. His relationship with Cora had gone worse than sour; it had turned from demeaning and painful to sickeningly terrifying, and he would have been utterly lost if not for Lacey. _And I have never even said thank you. What kind of monster am I?_

"Don't say that," she replied, but the response sounded automatic. Gold cocked his head.

"Will you tell me what's troubling you, Lacey?" he asked tentatively, afraid she would push his clumsy efforts at offering comfort away.

She bit her lip, looking uncertain. "I just…it's been a bad week. That's all."

Every instinct Gold had told him to leave it alone, to draw back before he said something that would chase her away. After all, his wife had never liked it when he pressed her, even when he was right to do so. Or even when he was trying to help. _Lacey's different, _he told himself for the hundredth time, because he knew that she was. He _knew _she was. Yet he still hesitated, swallowing hard and debating with himself if he should dare press her. Fortunately, before he could wrestle his illogical misgivings into submission, Lacey continued:

"Renee is just… Oh, nevermind. It isn't your problem."

Lacey shook her head, and Gold pulled back a little to look at her. For some reason, they'd never discussed her daughter—oh, Lacey mentioned Renee from time to time, but Gold had always assumed that she just wanted to keep their (admittedly awkward) relationship away from her three year old. Having been a parent himself, he couldn't blame her for that, even though he had lost his son years earlier. Pushing aside the pang of pain that thought engendered, Gold focused back on Lacey, looking at her drawn and worried face.

"Is something wrong with Renee?"

"She's sick," his lover replied in a whisper, looking down at her shoes. "She's got pneumonia, and Doctor Whale wants to check her into the hospital, but I can't afford it. I've been looking for a second job, but no one is hiring."

Damn. No wonder why she was worried and out of sorts! Gold had never been accused of being particularly soft of heart, but even he felt a small tug at his heartstrings when he thought of a sick child whose loving parent could not afford to give them the best of medical care. He remembered what it was like to have nothing, remembered scraping and struggling and doing his damnedest, only to find it was not enough. And now Lacey was discovering the same heartbreak—but he could spare her that, couldn't he? He was the richest man in Storybrooke, and even if she wouldn't accept outright charity—and he wouldn't ask her to sacrifice her pride like that—he could do other things. Couldn't he?

He could marry her. The thought occurred to him immediately, and the fact that Gold did not dismiss it as ludicrous within seconds said an awful lot about the depth of his feelings for Lacey. But the idea _was _crazy. Even if Cora had not been such an inescapable and awful part of his life, there was no way Lacey would want to tie herself to a man nearly twice her age. To the town monster. If he asked, she would have had to have been made to say not just no, but _emphatically _no, and Gold could not bring himself to face that rejection. Not from the woman he loved. _Even if I have never been able to say the words, _he thought, throat tight with emotion. She would leave him someday, he knew, but it was best not to speed that day along. _Focus on helping Lacey, you fool. Not on yourself, _Gold told himself firmly, discarding marriage as a possible solution, no matter how pleasant the thought was.

But that wasn't the only option. He _could _help her in other ways, help save the toddler he would probably never meet. "I could use someone to help with inventory," he replied quickly.

"You could?" Blinking, Lacey looked up at him.

Technically, he didn't need the help at all. Inventorying the shop was an ongoing process that Gold rather enjoyed doing slowly and meticulously, but even Cora could not argue that the task certainly needed doing. It was an excuse to hire Lacey, but a good one. One he could make stand up to any scrutiny.

"I'll make a deal with you," Gold answered, but he gave Lacey a small smile to make sure she understood that _she _was no mere deal. "Work for me for two months, and I'll pay for the best care money can buy. Anything Renee needs, she'll get."

Brilliant blue eyes went wide. "Gold, you can't—"

"I'll pay you, too," he said hurriedly. "You can work evenings after the library is closed. It won't affect your job."

After all, neither of them could afford the scrutiny any closure of the library would bring their way, particularly if the mayor got involved.

"It's too much," Lacey objected.

"There's a lot of inventory to do," he countered easily, hiding the way his heart was pounding in his chest. She had to say yes, didn't she? The thought of having Lacey in the shop every evening for two whole _months _was downright intoxicating. That would be more time together than they'd _ever _had.

"It's still too much."

But she hadn't said no. And Gold did have another ace up his sleeve, one he knew would draw her in. "You could also help me organize my library at home," he offered. "The parlor is full of boxes of books I've never scraped up the motivation to take upstairs."

"That's hard with your leg, isn't it?" Lacey asked immediately, her expression softening. "I'd help you without you having to pay me, you know."

A braver man would have dropped to one knee here and now, asking her to marry him so that Lacey would never have to worry about money again. But Gold had always been a coward, so he said instead:

"Believe me, sweetheart, I'll get my money's worth."

"Are you _sure_?"

A smile tugged at his lips; his heart was singing. "Absolutely."

Lacey hesitated once more, but he knew he had her. She needed help, and more than him slipping cash into her pockets could provide. And Gold would be damned if he let her struggle when he could simply solve the problem by writing a check or two. Tellingly, Lacey never asked how much he was going to pay her, but Gold planned on more than matching the pay the town charter laid out for the librarian. He knew she needed it.

"All right," Lacey said slowly, but then she finally smiled, relief making her look much younger. "I still think you're not going to get much out of this deal, but…thank you, Gold."

Touching her cheek gently, Gold leaned in to kiss Lacey's forehead. "Go on. Get Renee to the hospital. I'll take care of the rest."

This was not charity. Gold got as much out of it as Lacey did—he got to have her close by, got to have an excuse to help her when no one else would. Gold would never say the words, but being in love was not charity.

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_**A/N:**__ Next up: Lacey wants to thank Gold for the help._

_I've received several prompts for the next bit, so here's your chance to tell me which you want to see:_

_1\. When does Lacey first suspect Cora is hurting him?  
__2\. Lacey and Gold meet  
__3\. Renee is sick; Lacey and Gold stay home for a date  
__4\. Lacey and Gold are so NOT on a date_


	3. Chapter 3

**3.**

Lacey was in love.

She'd never been in love before, not even in high school, but now that the feeling consumed her, she knew exactly what it was. She was in love with Gold. She'd known it for some time and had burned to tell him so, but she was so afraid that she'd frighten off this difficult and emotionally fragile man who had become her lover. She knew that he cared about her, even deeply, but whatever had happened in his past had obviously sworn him off of love. There were times Lacey wished she could hunt down his ex-wife (who had apparently been cheating on him before their son's death, though why _any _woman would look at another man when they had Gold was beyond Lacey) and punch her. Fortunately, she had no idea where the other woman was, just that she'd left Storybrooke years earlier, leaving Lacey to deal with the closed off man that Gold had become. So, Lacey never said that she loved him, or at least not when he could hear it. Whispers when he was sleeping did not count, after all. Instead, she did her best to _show _him her feelings, to bring him around that way.

Eventually, he'd come around. Lacey had time.

"Renee's out of the hospital," she told him as she walked into the shop early one Wednesday afternoon, and watched a small smile meet her relief. _Gold _was happy for her. Tony had just muttered something about how Lacey was spending more time with her sick daughter than was necessary, and that she should go to the Rabbit Hole with him instead.

Lacey didn't know why, but for some reason, she found herself accepting Tony's invitation every Friday, even though she wanted nothing to do with her ex-boyfriend. Tony was still her father's toady, and neither of them gave a damn about Renee. They never had.

"That's wonderful, sweetheart," her lover—and soon to be employer—replied.

"It is," she confirmed happily, bouncing behind the counter to take his hands in her own. She loved his hands, loved what he could do with them and loved holding them. "And it's thanks to you."

"Lacey, I just—" he started awkwardly, but she cut him off.

"Made a deal, I know," she grinned. "So let me fulfill my end of the bargain."

After all, Lacey wasn't an idiot, and she knew that Gold really didn't care about her doing inventory in his shop. The silly man was really much more transparent than he believed, at least to her. She knew that the terms of his deal were crafted so that they could spend time together, which was why Lacey had felt so guilty accepting his terms in the first place. She was going to get medical care for her daughter _and _get to spend time with her lover. How was any of this a sacrifice on her part?

"You don't have to start today," Gold replied immediately, and a part of Lacey wondered how he pulled off the frightening persona of the landlord with so much kindness hidden in his heart. "Not the day your daughter got out of the hospital."

"She was released yesterday, silly. That's why the library was closed yesterday and today," she replied, touched by his concern. "But Renee is at Ms. Lagle's daycare, now."

Renee loved playing with the other children at Ms. Lagle's, but Lacey could rarely afford to send her there. But what with the amount Gold was going to pay her—the infernal man had actually put that in the contract he'd had her sign, and had told her to take it or leave it, no negotiation allowed. It was far more than she needed, and Lacey could afford to splurge on her daughter now and again, particularly when it made Renee so happy. And now she could also afford to spend some time with the man she loved.

Gold stared at her rather stupidly, and Lacey felt her eyes twinkling.

"She'll be there until after dinner," she finished, wiggling suggestively.

"You still don't have to start working today," Gold said valiantly, but she could see how wide his eyes had grown. Really, did she have to hit him over the head with an encyclopedia? _Every _volume of it?

"Then how about I just concentrate on saying thank you today?" she asked, lifting his hands to kiss his knuckles. Surely even Gold would get the point, now. But just in case he didn't, she added: "You've got a bed in the back, don't you?"

Watching Gold's mouth drop open made Lacey giggle. Yes, he had finally caught on, and Lacey gave him her most seductive smile.

"Lacey…" he whispered, and she could hear the way desire made his voice drop into a growl. Listening to that always sent a shiver down her spine, and today was no exception. Lacey wasn't offering herself to him out of obligation, after all. She wanted him desperately, wanted to feel loved and needed and to find the freedom she always felt in Gold's arms.

So, she stepped into him to give him a lingering kiss, and was so glad when his arms immediately wrapped around her. Gold had the strangest sense of what was right and proper sometimes, but today Lacey just wanted _him. _Oh, she wanted to thank him, too, but that was mostly an excuse. She wanted _him_, all of him, and Lacey kissed Gold like there was no tomorrow, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding him close. She would have spent forever with him in a heartbeat if he would only ask, but she wasn't sure that was what he wanted. _This will have to be enough, _she thought, and almost convinced herself of it_. _Then Gold pulled back and Lacey felt her heart clench; what had she done wrong?

"I have a better idea," Gold said huskily, his arms still around her. "I'll close up early."

"Why?" she asked, trying not to sound small and suddenly afraid.

Gold touched her face gently. "You deserve better than an uncomfortable cot in the back of a pawnshop. Let me cook dinner for you at my house."

"I wasn't proposing we _eat_ on the bed, you know," she said bluntly, encouraged by the desire she could still see in his eyes—and feel in the way he was pressing against her.

"I never said we had to eat first, sweetheart. But you always do give me an appetite," he replied with a wink, and Lacey's world was right again.

Perhaps she'd never manage to have forever with this wonderful and infuriating man, but that had to be all right. What she had was enough. It would have to be.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ Next up: Gold somehow winds up babysitting when Lacey is sick._

_Thanks so much for the prompts for voting! Part 5 will be the most popular prompt, which will be when Lacey starts to suspect that Cora his hurting gold._


	4. Chapter 4

**4\. **

Now that he'd met Renee, Gold had to admit that the little girl had wormed her way into his heart. He wasn't sure how—he _wasn't _a good man, and wasn't the type who women trusted with their children—but somehow Renee's cute little smile tugged on the heartstrings he wasn't supposed to have. He was the monster of Storybrooke, the man who _never _offered help or a break when someone needed it, and yet one smile from that little girl could make him want to move worlds for her. Was it because she was Lacey's daughter, or was there something more? Lacey certainly had come to mean more to him than he would ever admit, but Gold was not the kind of man who automatically extended his affections to the toddler that his girlfriend had had out of wedlock.

His girlfriend. Was that what Lacey was? The word seemed totally inadequate…but somehow made a warm spark stir inside him. He'd never admit to her how much she meant to him, because no beautiful woman her age could _possibly _want a miserable old cripple to love her, but Gold knew the truth of how he felt. It was foolish and risky, but he could not help himself. Which was why he'd come to the apartment over the library when she'd called.

"Gold?" A miserable sounding cough had come from the other end. "I can't make over tonight. I know we had plans but"—another cough, and then a violent-sounding sneeze—"I'm a little under the weather."

"That sounds like a lot more than a little, dear," he'd said, listening to Lacey sniffle and wondering why it made his heart ache. "Should you go to the doctor?"

"No. I'm fine, really. I just need some sleep. Renee's just so full of herself tonight that I can't get her to go down early, and I stupidly cancelled the sitter—"

She'd sounded so defeated and wretched that Gold found himself saying: "I can come watch her, if you like. Ask me nicely, and I might even bring you soup."

The moment of silence had stretched on for so long that Gold began to wonder if she'd hung up on him. Finally, however, Lacey had whispered:

"You…you'd do that for me?"

"Of course I would," he'd replied without thinking, and then quickly had to amend that to say: "If you want me to, that is. I can stay away if you prefer—"

"No!" Lacey had cut him off, and he thought he had been able to hear a smile in her voice, hesitant though it was. "I'd love that."

That was how he'd wound up sitting on a couch that had lost a spring or two, next to a bouncing three year old who just wanted to watch _Beauty and the Beast_ over and over again. At least it was one of the less annoying Disney movies, but Renee was bound to notice if he tried to fast forward through 'Be Our Guest'. He _hated _that song for some reason; it grated on every last nerve he had. Still, Renee was a good kid, well behaved and relatively easy to handle. She'd even been excited to see him, demanding a hug from 'Messer' Gold and promising ever so solemnly to let her mother get some sleep.

For her part, Lacey had taken one look at the soup Gold had brought over and ran for the bathroom, which told him a lot about how _she _felt. He'd checked on her several times, and rose to do so again now, before he had to listen to a second rendition of that damn song. "I'll be right back, all right, princess?" he asked Renee.

"Where you go?" the three year old asked.

"I'm going to go check on your mother," he replied, resisting the urge to muse her hair. He used to do that for his son, but he generally tried not to think of the boy he had lost in that accident so many years ago. He was glad Lacey had a daughter, to be honest. If she'd had a son, the pain might have been too strong.

"Okay!"

Grabbing his cane, Gold crossed the little apartment to ease the bedroom door open, trying to do so quietly and not wake Lacey. Unfortunately, her eyes flicked open right away.

"Hey," she whispered, sniffling again.

"Hey yourself," he said, trying not to sound awkward. He'd slept with this woman more than a dozen times. How could he feel awkward looking at her when she was clad in a modest nightgown in her own bed?

Of course, the fact that he'd never actually been with her in _this _bed probably had a lot to do with that. She'd come to his house and they'd shared the small bed in the back of his shop once (which had not been the best idea ever), but never here. Not with her toddler sharing the same room. Gold might have been the town monster, but having sex with a woman when her child was present was not something he was capable of. So, he'd never even been in this room, never been past the living area of the apartment. He wasn't actually sure he was welcome in this inner sanctum that Lacey and Renee shared, which left Gold hesitating in the doorway and trying not to fidget.

"You can come in," Lacey said with a tired smile. "I don't bite. Much."

When she _did _it wasn't because he wasn't welcome, that was for sure, although Gold tried hard not to let his mind drift in inappropriate directions. And stayed firmly in the doorway. "I just wanted to see how you're feeling. I can warm up some soup if you're up to it."

"Um. Not yet," she said, swallowing hard. But she didn't run for the bathroom, which had to be an improvement. "Maybe in a bit?"

"It'll be waiting for you," Gold promised. Then he wasn't quite sure what to say, so he gestured vaguely at the living room, where the strands of 'Be Our Guest' were wafting in from. "I'll just…leave you be, then."

"You don't have to go," Lacey replied, her voice very small, and Gold saw the loneliness in her eyes that he so often felt in his own heart.

"All right," he said quietly, and before he knew what he was doing, he was sitting at her bedside. Lacey reached out immediately to take his hand, and Gold found his other hand reaching out to brush sweaty hair out of her face.

She hardly looked her best right now, Lacey French. Her skin was clammy and the dark circles under her eyes made her look older than she was. Her normally thick hair was stringy and could use a good shampoo, and she really did need a shower. But to Gold, she was still the most beautiful woman in the world. _You've got it bad, _the voice of reason told him. _You need to get out before you get hurt. This can't go anywhere but downhill. She'll leave you. They always do._

"Thank you for coming over," Lacey said now, and he felt a smile warm his face as he firmly pushed the voice of logic and fear aside. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Well, luckily for both of us, you'll never need to find out, now, will you?" Gold replied before he'd even thought about what he was going to say. _You fool!_ She'd misinterpret that for sure, and then she'd leave. Lacey didn't want to know how much he loved her. That would only chase her away.

This time her smile was full and real, brilliant and made her blue eyes shine, ever so briefly. "I don't deserve you," she told him.

"Oh, don't say that, sweetheart," he said, finding his voice turning a little husky with emotion. "You deserve far better than an old monster."

"You're not a monster," Lacey retorted firmly, squeezing his hand hard. "I—"

_Crash_. Whatever she was going to say was swallowed up by the sound of something falling to the floor in the living room, followed by a contrite three year old: "Uh oh."

"I'd best go check on Renee," Gold said, willing himself to let go of Lacey's hand and not wonder what she was going to say.

"Yeah," she whispered. "She can get into all kinds of trouble at this age."

"Can't they all?"

Neither of them moved for several long moments, and when had their hands become so closely intertwined? Not for the first time, it occurred to Gold that he could do this for the rest of his life, could dedicate himself to this beautiful woman and the child that she struggled to raise alone. But just because _he _could didn't mean _she _would; despite what Lacey said, she deserved someone far better than he. So, Gold forced himself to his feet, leaning over to brush his lips gently over Lacey's forehead and squeeze her hand one last time.

"I'll go clean that up," he told her. "Whatever it is. You sleep, and call for soup when you want it."

Leaning heavily on his cane and feeling every one of his years, Gold headed out before he could foolishly ask Lacey what she'd wanted to say before. His burning desire to fill two specific words in after that lonely "I" was unwise, and he knew it. There were a thousand and one other sentences that began with "I", and Lacey had undoubtedly been about to utter any one of those. Anything but _I love you._ He knew better, after all. Their life was no fairytale, and if she was Beauty—not a hard parallel to make, given the movie Lacey's daughter was watching—he was not a beast that would turn into a prince upon her kiss. After all, they'd far more than kissed (and done things no Disney cartoon would ever show), and Gold was still his own angry, bitter, and monstrous self.

Yet the town monster still limped into the living room to help Renee clean up the juice she'd somehow spilled out of her Sippy-cup. She'd also managed to drop her purple crocodile into the mess, so he soothed her tears and promised to help her get the stuffed animal clean in no time. In the end, he wound up sending it to his dry cleaners and paying a rush fee to get the purple crocodile clean by bedtime, which was just four hours away. But it was amazing how the right application of money could grease the skids of anything. Dove arrived within fifteen minutes to pick up the stuffed beastie, which he promptly dropped off at the cleaners and returned another two hours later. Gold never told Lacey that little after-hours cleaning cost him $200, but she never asked, either.

In the meantime, he rewound _Beauty and the Beast_, and tried not to like it when Renee fell asleep in his lap.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ More to come! Please do let me know what you think. _


	5. Chapter 5

**5\. **

He had more or less known the librarian forever. Not that they travelled in the same social circles—or that Gold, strictly speaking, socialized at all—but he knew Lacey French. He wasn't particularly fond of her, of course, but Gold wasn't particularly fond of _anyone_. Dove was the closest person he had to a friend, and that was merely because of their business relationship. He wasn't a nice man, and that fact didn't bother Mr. Gold at all. He was what he was, and that was that. At least he was consistent, which was more than he could say for some of the people in the ridiculous little town he'd chosen to call home.

Why he'd been drawn to the Storybrooke Free Public Library that day was anyone's guess, but he had been. Gold didn't even remember consciously making the decision to walk through the double doors, but he did remember deciding that he didn't want to talk to Doctor Hopper or the other three people who were socializing with the cheerful little librarian. Instead, he wandered off into a corner, looking through the classics. He hadn't read a good book that he didn't own in quite some time. Whatever foolishness had made him come through the door could at least prove useful, and he started looking for books to check out.

"You'll hate that book," a voice said from behind him as he flipped pages.

She'd startled him, but town monsters did not jump when cute little librarians intruded on their peace and quiet. Instead, he turned, eying her archly. "And why is _that_, dearie?"

Unlike most of the town, Lacey French didn't flee when he challenged her. She just shrugged and gestured at the book he held, utterly unfazed by his caustic tone. "_Beauty and the Beast_," she explained. "It's a timeless story of true love. Not your type."

"Perhaps I'm simply a fan of the classics," Gold retorted, glancing down at the book's surprisingly intact spine. It was an antique, too, at least fifty years old and far more worthy than this dank library deserved. Really, it had been the book's good condition and beauty that had drawn him in far more than the story.

"I can see you reading _Jack and the Beanstalk_, or _Puss in Boots,_" Lacey replied, making a face. "Or maybe even _The Miller's Daughter._ But not _Beauty and the Beast. _You'd like tales of clever tricksters, not unfortunates who refuse to give in to intimidation."

Despite his determination not to show surprise, Gold felt his eyebrows go up. They'd been talking for less than a minute, and she'd already stood up to him twice. _Most people in this town don't manage that in a year, _he thought with a quirk of his lips that might have been charitably called a smile. Still, he couldn't let a uppity young thing get the better of him, so Gold gestured airily with the book.

"You're forgetting that one of the original tricksters graces this book with her presence," he countered, enjoying the debate already. "Or have you only read the Beaumont version?"

Lacey's jaw dropped. "You've actually _read _the book?"

"Of course I have." _Score: Gold 1, Lacey 0_. Holding back a smirk was hard.

"How do I know you're not just having me on?" the librarian demanded, her blue eyes narrowing.

"Well, we could start with the fact that this is the Villeneuve version—which is, in my opinion, far superior," he replied, and then proceeded to demonstrate his knowledge (though why he felt the need to prove anything to Lacey, he didn't know). "Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve actually details the main characters' pasts, unlike Beaumont. In the Villeneuve version, the Evil Fairy isn't punishing the prince for being cruel or unkind. She turns him into a beast when he rejects her advances. As I said, the original trickster."

"You're forgetting the part about how that same Evil Fairy tried to murder Beauty as a child, so she was swapped out for a dead merchant's child," Lacey said.

"Hardly. Though I have to admit that I'm surprised _you _would know that," he said, just to needle her.

It worked. "Why is that surprising?" she demanded.

"Well, I would have picked you more for the trashy romance novel type." Gold gave her his most innocent look. "Or, at best, harlequins from the post war period." _Books no one with any sense would read._

Surprisingly, Lacey laughed. "I suppose I deserved that in payback for trying to guess your literary type."

Her smile was blinding, and Gold's heart skipped a beat.

He came to the library every week after that, refusing to admit to himself that he wanted to provoke yet another verbal fencing match with the beautiful librarian. He _wasn't _a good man, and he didn't like vivacious brunettes with a taste for good literature. He didn't appreciate her cleverness, and he certainly wasn't attracted to her.

Gold was just bored.

He wasn't falling for her. Absolutely _not_.

* * *

He was adorable when he was flustered. Gold had been coming by the library for weeks—how long Lacey really wasn't sure, but it had been awhile—and he'd pick a fight over some book or another. Or maybe she would. He was the best part about her Wednesday afternoons, coming by shortly after the fifth graders left and staying for an hour, or sometimes more. They'd sit near the circulation desk and talk, picking on one another's taste in books or agreeing that this _one _book was good enough for them both to like. Gold's visits had somehow become the highlight of her week, and Lacey was quite happy with that.

Gold was, however, rather endearing when he didn't know what to say to something. Right now he was flustered and borderline incoherent, but maybe that was what happened to the town monster when you told them they were being a sweetie.

"I'm—I'm—I'm _not _being a 'sweetie'!" he finally got out, obviously trying to make the words a growl. But his wide eyes and his stuttering made the words anything but terrifying.

"Of course you are," she retorted. "You're a closet softie. I've discovered your secret."

"I am not!"

Lacey leaned forward, grinning. "I'll make you a deal. You take me out to dinner, and if you manage to make me _completely _miserable, I'll stop calling you a sweetie. But otherwise, I get to say that you're a closet softie. At least with me."

"You want to _what_?" Gold looked like someone had hit him between the eyes with a hammer, and Lacey did have to admit that she'd just asked him out in the least conventional way possible.

She wasn't even sure why she'd done it. Lacey was usually quiet and a little mousey—what was it about Gold that made her so bold? She couldn't imagine speaking this way to anyone else, but with him she felt like she could be someone else. Someone brave. She wasn't afraid of him in the slightest, and for someone who was generally wary of most everyone around her, that said far too much.

But maybe he looked so shocked because he didn't like her at all. Maybe he thought she was ugly, or wore dumpy clothes, or he wasn't interested in anyone who was as flat broke as she was. _Or someone who has a daughter already, with a man who…who what? _Lacey couldn't remember what had happened to Renee's father, only that she'd refused to tell her father who it was. _And I loved him. I _know _I loved him._ Somehow, that thought made her eyes drift to Gold, who was still looking at her like he didn't know what to say.

"I, um, was wondering if you wanted to go out sometime." She gave him an embarrassed smile, trying her best to be brave.

"You—you want to go to dinner with _me_?" Gold's brown eyes were huge, and just as terrified as Lacey felt.

Lacey's voice went very small. "If you want to."

"Of course I do." His voice dropped several octaves, and sent a pleasant shiver down her spine. "I just—who would want to be seen with the town monster?"

"I would." She thought he was quite handsome, after all, in a distinguished manner that no other man in the town managed. And Lacey knew he could be a gentleman when he wanted to be.

Something broken flashed across his features too quickly for her to track. "How about I cook you dinner?" he asked suddenly. "That way, you don't have to be embarrassed by being seen with me."

"I wouldn't mind." But a home cooked dinner did sound lovely, too, and he looked so desperate to please her that Lacey didn't want to disagree. So, she gave him her best smile. "But dinner sounds lovely, wherever it is."

They quickly made plans for the following night, which was the one time that Lacey knew that Ashley was available for babysitting. She didn't have a lot of extra cash, but splurging on a babysitter so that she could go out with someone _other _than Tony Rose felt downright wonderful, so Lacey decided she would do whatever she needed to make ends meet. She _wanted _this, and maybe she needed it, too.

She had no idea how one date would change her life.

* * *

_**A/N:**__ I know, it's been forever since this fic saw the light of day. But I'm trying to clear out some old stuff, so here is (probably) the final part of TLWO, which brings Gold and Lacey together, as we see them in Freeze on the Stones. I hope you've enjoyed! _


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